


Nathan/Warren drabbles

by carusbasium



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Challenge Response, Drabble Collection, Gen, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, My First Work in This Fandom, POV Third Person
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-29
Updated: 2017-08-28
Packaged: 2018-04-28 18:09:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 6,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5100569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/carusbasium/pseuds/carusbasium
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a collection of (mostly) unconnected drabbles that were done as responses to "Send me a line" challenge.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. “Is there a reason you're naked in my bed?”

Nathan had seen some strange things during his time at Blackwell. He was used to dealing with crazy shit that Hayden and the other guys came up with while drunk or high, but the sight before him now was something he would never had expected to see. Closing the door behind him, Nathan walked around to the other side of the room; eyeing the guy occupying his bed as he went.

It was obvious Warren had simply crashed immediately after walking in, he was sprawled on the bed so that his legs and arms were hanging over the sides and seemed to be asleep. Nathan wasn't sure how to handle the situation, given the distinctive lack of clothing on the other boy. He came to a halt and carefully kicked Warren's hand, not really believing it would work. But Warren stirred, his head snapped up to meet Nathan's gaze when the latter cleared his throat.

“Is there a reason you’re naked in my bed?” Nathan was surprised how even and calm he sounded as that was not a reaction he'd normally have. The situation was simply too absurd for him to process it, so he was left feeling strangely calm.  
Realization seemed to hit Warren as his eyes widened in horror. The boy pulled himself together, trying to keep his front covered as he moved back. “Uh, I was in the shower.” was his answer.  
“Alright.” Nathan paused, feeling slightly amused as he watched how Warren wobbled trying to sit up. “That doesn't answer why are you in my bed.” he pointed out.

When the other guy just frowned – seemingly puzzled why his answer hadn't been satisfactory – Nathan came to realize Warren was drunk. He allowed Warren to take his time while trying to do the complex act of sitting up and thinking at the same time, and finally the guy came up with another answer.  
“I wanted to tell you I'm sorry.” he confessed in a tiny voice. Nathan didn't get the chance to respond before Warren continued: “I shouldn't have hurt you. I'm sorry and my head hurts.”  
The naked boy looked like he was about to burst into tears, either from emotion or the pain.

Nathan let out a sigh as he leaned down to yank the bed covers violently from under the bed invader. Warren fell on his side, hugging himself tightly as he tried to keep his modesty intact. Nathan threw the blanket over the boy, but kept the bedspread himself. Warren soon peaked from under the freshly acquired cover, watching as Nathan took of his jacket and sat on the couch with the bedspread in his lap.  
“Umm...” Warren started but wasn't really sure what to say.  
“Just go to sleep, it'll help the headache.” Nathan assured, kicking off his shoes. He could hear 'thanks' being mumbled somewhere under the covers, and as Nathan laid down on the couch that wasn't really suitable for sleeping, he briefly wondered if he was losing the last of sanity.


	2. “You heard me. Take. It. Off.”

“What the fuck is actually wrong with you?” Nathan asked without any malice in his voice.  
Warren paid no mind to the question and continued unbuttoning his boyfriend's shirt.  
“I'm not doing this.” Nathan protested, throwing his hands in the air.  
“Oh come on, it will be fun.” Warren pleaded, running his fingers up and down Nathan's bare chest.  
“Maybe for you because you are a moron.”

Warren pouted in disapproval but of course Nathan couldn't see it. It was time to bring out the big guns, and Warren let his hand slid down on the other boy's body.  
Nathan groaned, annoyed that he was getting aroused despite trying to will himself not to. He knew that just one look at Warren would lessen his enthusiasm, but the sensation was too good to just give up like that. The problem was that he would eventually have to face Warren again, so Nathan really had to make up his mind. When his boyfriend pushed himself against him, Nathan had made his decision.

“Just take it off and we can move to the bed.” he said under his breath, finally looking at Warren again and feeling a shudder of disgust in his spine.  
“But Nathan...” Warren whined but sounded like he was holding back giggles. The little shit was obviously getting a kick out of Nathan's reaction, and the latter wondered where he had gone wrong in choosing a boyfriend that was such an annoying nerd.

Nathan placed his hands firmly on Warren's shoulders. “You heard me. Take. It. Off.” he ordered in a grave voice. Time for laughs was over, it was time to get between the sheets.  
“Awh...” Warren was defeated, he finally removed the monkey mask and tossed it aside. They wouldn't be going ape tonight.


	3. “Hey, have you seen the..? Oh.”

Warren had turned his whole room upside down during the search, but still he was left empty-handed. The fruitlessness of his efforts was really starting to take a toll on him and frustration was quickly setting in. He sat on the floor, looking under his bed for the fifth time that day but nothing had changed.

“Come on, this isn't funny... I need to find it...” he muttered at the universe in general, throwing his head back. He was slowly tracing his steps for the past few weeks, but he was absolutely positive he had never left his room with it, so it should be there. And yet it was nowhere, simply vanished into the thin air. The mystery was killing him and Warren knew he wouldn't be able to rest until he came to some sort of conclusion. Detective work needed to be done, and the first thing was to interview some possible witnesses.

Detective Graham headed for his boyfriend's room, knowing that the guy would be there as he had earlier asked Warren to come by. Not bothering to knock, he stepped in.  
“Hey, have you seen the..?” Oh.” Warren stopped dead in his tracks when saw the mostly naked Nathan.  
“Took you fucking long enough.” the other boy complained, tossing aside the magazine he had been reading while waiting. “Now close the door and come to bed.”

Still trying process this surprise, Warren quickly shut the door and then slowly moved to the side of the bed.  
“Is this your idea of payback?” Warren asked, beginning to feel amused.   
“Get your ass in the fucking bed, we're doing this.” Nathan urged but made no effort to pull the other one in.  
Warren laughed, he had no way of denying this was weird but he also couldn't refuse after what he had done last week. He figured he might as well give in and try, so Warren joined Nathan on the bed.  
Now that the mystery of the missing monkey mask had been solved, it was time to go ape.


	4. “I can't believe you talked me into this.”

Campus was quiet and empty, excluding the two students that were just sneaking out of their dorm. The boy in the lead walked with a confident stride, he had done this plenty of times before and knew it was unlikely anyone would notice them at this hour. The boy following him was hunched over, almost tiptoeing as he struggled to keep up, and constantly looking around.

“Wait up, would you!” Warren hissed and the guy he was following groaned as he was forced to slow down.  
“Stop being such a pussy, no one's going to fucking see you!” Nathan didn't even bother to keep his voice down, which made Warren shush him to no avail. The older boy rolled his eyes and stomped back to Warren, grabbed hold of his wrist and started dragging the guy toward their destination. 

“I can't believe you talked me into this,” muttered Warren as they came to a halt and looked up at their objective.  
“Shut up and put your nerd brain to work.” Nathan ordered as he walked forward, and placed his hand on the Tobanga.  
“Tonight this baby is coming home with me.”


	5. “Have I entered an alternate universe or did you really just crack a smile for me?”

Nathan groaned as he left his dorm room because he knew Warren was going to be bouncing by his side soon enough, it had become a regular occurrence so he knew to expect it. And before Nathan could turn the corner, Warren appeared with an enthusiastic: “Good morning!” Nathan could never figure out how this nerd was so full of energy so early in the day.

Some people would associate 'intelligence' as their first choice for Warren, but Nathan had come to associate 'persistence' with the nerd more than anything else. No matter how many times he had tried to drive Warren away, told him to get lost and avoided him, Warren still made continuous attempts to be friendly. It was baffling yet sort of comforting at the same time.

“What do you want now?” Nathan asked.  
“Your undivided attention for starters,” replied Warren as he moved to block Nathan's path.  
“I'm going to fucking class, Graham, get lost.” That wasn't exactly true, but the nerd didn't need to know all the details.  
“Huh, that's interesting, I didn't know you were taking that class.” Warren looked thoughtful as he said that.  
“Well I am-- Wait, what class?”

“You said you were late for fucking class. I didn't know you were taking classes for that.” a smile formed on Warren's face as he said that, obviously thinking he had been very clever with his wordplay. Nathan stared at him for a moment, not believing this was happening and it was the reason to why he forgot to make sure his own face displayed only annoyance; a smile escaped him.  
“Have I entered an alternate universe or did you really just crack a smile for me?” Warren sounded downright giddy about it and bounced after Nathan as the boy pushed past him.  
“Shut up, Graham, you're annoying.” Nathan didn't manage to sound quite as annoyed as he had hoped to.

“Okay, I'll leave you alone if you answer one thing.” That was a tempting offer so Nathan stopped and turned to look at the nerd, expecting the question.  
“Do you need a tutor for your class?” the nerd's grin grew wider with each word, and he finished it with a wink and: “Because I'm available.”  
Nathan was sure he wanted to strangle this moron and he expected to look like it to scare this guy away, but something must've short-circuited in his brain because the next thing satisfied Warren said was: “Now I know this is an alternate universe.”


	6. “We're in the middle of a thunderstorm and you wanna stop and feel the rain?”

Nathan was cursing into the wind as he fought to walk back toward Warren. They were almost at the bunker, soon safe from all this hell that was raging around them, but this kid had suddenly stopped walking. Warren had taken shelter next to a big tree, leaning on it to keep his balance and his eyes fixed on the sky.

“Graham! Move your fucking ass!” Nathan shouted as he reached the other boy, grabbing him by the shoulder.  
“In a minute!” Warren shouted back, brushing the insistent hand away. “ We might never experience anything like this again!”  
“We're in the middle of a fucking thunderstorm and you wanna stop and feel the fucking rain?!” Nathan wondered if this nerd had been hit in the head by something, because he wasn't making any sense.  
“Look at it!” the boy gestured at the advancing tornado, his face wild and eyes the size of saucers. “This is a weather phenomenon of a life time! This needs to be witnessed, Nathan!”

Nathan wanted to tell Warren exactly where he could stick that witnessing, but he knew they didn't have time to argue. The tornado was closing in and the longer they'd wait, the more difficult it would be to get to the bunker.  
“I've seen this shit already.” Nathan said and without waiting for any response, he put his arm around Warren and started forcing the boy to move with him. No one would be left behind like this. 


	7. “Looks like we'll be trapped for a while...”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one had two lines to use: "Looks like we'll be trapped for a while...” and "I'm pregnant."

It felt like the whole diner was about to collapse, rain banging relentlessly against the roof and the strong winds seemed to be trying to push the walls down. Warren peeked from between the boarded up windows at the partially destroyed street and he wondered how much worse would it get. He could see some of the buildings had been hit with debris and that cars – including Warren's own – had been tipped over. It didn't seem like the storm was going to let up any time soon, so all he could do was to hope that the diner would hold. 

Most of the truckers had left the diner as soon as the storm had started picking up and now there were only a handful of people left. Joyce was tending to that tough loner guy and his dog was idly walking around, sniffing things as he went. But the weirdest addition to their stranded little group had only recently arrived, soaking wet and wild eyed, and was currently sitting in the corner booth. It was Nathan Prescott, and he was the last person Warren would've expected to see there. 

Nathan looked jittery and few minutes ago he had thrown his phone to the floor, accompanied by a slew of curse words. Maybe Warren wasn't completely in his right mind, but he felt like talking to Nathan would be a good idea. At least it would give them both something else to focus on rather than to just wait for the oncoming destruction.

“Looks like we'll be trapped for a while...” Warren said, sliding into the seat opposite of Nathan. The guy looked at him, clearly not having expected to be approached.  
“We'll fucking die here!” he exclaimed. “Have you seen the shit that's going on?” Nathan banged his fist on the board over the window for emphasis.  
“Well yeah, but...” Warren didn't really know what to say, he couldn't deny that he wasn't fearing that this diner would become his last resting place. “Why are you.. here?” was all he could muster.  
“I was on my way somewhere. Then this fucking storm...” Nathan waved his hand dismissively.

The boys sat listening to the wind and rain for a moment, Warren watched as Nathan ran his hand through his hair and seemed to be on the edge of ripping some of it out. It surprised Warren, he had never figured a guy like Nathan would be so freaked out about a storm. The guy really must've been afraid for his life, and it made Warren feel sorry for the rich kid. No matter how shitty they had been to each other that week, Warren didn't want to see Nathan like that; he had to lift the mood somehow.

“I'm pregnant.” Warren blurt out, somehow it being the only thing he could think of. It seemed to have the desired effect, because Nathan's hand left his hair and the guy looked at him again.  
“..what?” all thoughts he had been struggling with were obviously forgotten for the moment thanks to Warren's sudden declaration.  
“I'm expecting a child.” explained Warren, nodding down to his stomach. He had pulled his arms inside his shirt and stretched the fabric to create the illusion of a baby bump. Nathan's eyes dropped to Warren's stomach, still completely baffled and unable to process what was happening in front of him.  
“Congrats.” Nathan said instictively, giving him a thumbs up with one hand. “Who's the father?”  
Warren smiled, feeling only a little bit stupid over being happy that Nathan played along in his distraction game  
“Maybe you are. I'm going to need you to pay child support.”   
Slowly but surely Nathan started to recover from his haze and he chuckled.


	8. “Don’t you dare throw that snowba-, goddammit!”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one came out really long because it had three lines to be used in it, and I apparently suck at brevity. The lines to use were:  
> “Don’t you dare throw that snowba-, goddammit!”  
> “You fainted…straight into my arms. You know, if you wanted my attention you didn’t have to go to such extremes.”  
> “You heard me. Take. It. Off.”

No one in Blackwell complained when classes were canceled due to the snow and students gladly enjoyed some extra free time. Nathan wasn't so sure about that 'enjoyment' but he was glad to skip class with permission for once. It was early in the morning so when he walked out of the dorm, no one was outside yet and most likely wouldn't be for hours, which was how Nathan preferred it. He hadn't gotten much sleep in the past couple days and was feeling exhausted, but they had told him that adjusting to his new medication would be a long process.

Taking in a deep breath of cold air, the boy made his way toward the Tobanga like he always did when he was feeling uneasy. Just being near it made Nathan feel just a little bit better when he couldn't – or wouldn't – go to anyone else with the things that were troubling him. It was too early to bother his therapist and Nathan didn't want to keep unloading everything on Victoria, so he took comfort in the totem's silent presence.

The boy had stood by the Tobanga for a few minutes, just looking up at it, when he started feeling like someone was watching him. This was a feeling he was uncomfortably used to, so he attempted to ignore it but was soon forced to acknowledge that he wasn't imagining this when something hit his back. Cursing he turned around and quickly spotted a familiar figure standing in the yard, currently scooping up more snow – Warren. He gave a quick wave to Nathan and then went back to shaping the ball in his hands. The appearance of this boy was so unexpected that Nathan just stared as the boy finished the ball and only processed what was happening when Warren lift his arm, taking aim again.

“Don’t you dare throw that snowba-,” Nathan started but the ball was already flying. “Goddammit!”  
The snowball had hit Nathan on the shoulder as he had failed to dodge it, but this was a mistake he wouldn't repeat. Warren wasted no time in making more ammo for himself but his third shot missed Nathan as the guy quickly moved to the side.  
“What the fuck are you doing, Graham?!” the snowballed victim shouted as he hurried out of the way of the fourth incoming ball. When Warren offered no explanation, Nathan decided it was time to stop this nonsense. He dashed toward the nerd, only to find himself chasing him around the yard. Warren was grinning and throwing snow at Nathan every opportunity he got, making the latter curse louder every single time.

Eventually Nathan caught up to his tormentor and grabbed his arm to stop any escape attempts. The desire to push Warren into the snow and bury him in it was strong, but instead Nathan furiously kicked some snow over the other boy's sneakers.  
“What's the big fucking idea?” Nathan demanded, glaring at the still stupidly smiling nerd.  
“Good morning to you as well.” Warren simply said, making Nathan want to strangle him on the spot. Ever since Nathan had buried the hatchet with Max, this nerd had been acting friendlier in increasing amounts and Nathan couldn't really understand why. He had tried to ignore it but Warren made it very difficult.

Suddenly Nathan started feeling little lightheaded – either because of all the running or because the nerd's annoying nonsense answer was killing Nathan's braincells – and he shut his eyes tight when little dots of light started dancing around Warren's face. This was followed by strength leaving him and Nathan felt himself topple forward but being unable to do anything about it. The last thing he was aware of was Warren saying something, but he couldn't make out what.

Nathan woke feeling cold, wet, and disoriented. Warren was hovering over him with a concerned look on his face that turned into relief when Nathan's eyes focused on him. Nathan took a moment to process the situation as he wondered why he was lying in the snow and why was this nerd holding his hand. Maybe the lack of sleep was taking a bigger toll than he had anticipated.

“What the fuck again, Graham?!” Nathan pushed Warren's hand away and sat up.  
“You fainted...” was the answer. Warren seemed to consider it for a moment and then added: “..Straight into my arms.” The smile tucking at the corners of his lips was winning against Warren's determination to remain serious in the situation. Nathan scoffed at the comment but accepted Warren's hand when the other boy offered to help him up.

“You know, if you wanted my attention you didn’t have to go to such extremes.” Warren beamed, he sounded like he was having the time of his life.   
“No, of course I don't.” Nathan agreed, brushing snow off of his clothes. “I only need to mind my own fucking business and I get your attention.”  
Warren huffed but made no rebuttal. Instead he asked; “Are you alright?”  
“Peachy. What's it to you?”  
“Well, you did just faint on me so...” Warren raised one eyebrow at him.   
“Just little tired, okay.” Nathan shrugged, eyeing the nerd and wondering why he seemed so concerned. Cold was really setting in, his light jacket wasn't well equipped to keep moisture out; Nathan shivered. 

“Maybe you should go back to bed.” Warren suggested, noting the shivering.  
“I told you I'm okay. I'd be better if you hadn't given me a fucking snow bath.” he shot a glare at Warren. “You could've at least caught me.”  
“Sorry, I wasn't expecting you to fall for me that easily.” responded the nerd, looking too pleased with himself.  
“What-fucking-ever, Graham, give me your jacket.” Nathan rolled his eyes, trying to ignore what the guy had just implied to him.   
“Huh?”  
“You heard me. Take. It. Off.”  
Surprisingly Warren needed no more persuading and he handed over his jacket without protest. Nathan quickly pulled the offered garment over his own and then started walking toward the Tobanga again, determined to pick up where he had left off.

“So are we even now?” Warren asked, but Nathan ignored him, expecting the boy to go back inside. He was proven wrong when Warren joined his side, not enjoying his turn of having to shiver. They both stood there facing the Tobanga in silence for good three minutes before Nathan's patience ran out; having to listen to Warren's teeth clatter was frustrating.  
“Go inside.” he ordered.  
“Only if you come too.” was the response.  
“You're cold.” Nathan tried to reason.  
“Wouldn't be if I was in my jacket.”   
“Tough shit, I'm not taking it off. It's your fault mine is wet.”  
“I wasn't asking you to take it off.” Warren pointed out.  
“...what the fuck, Graham.”  
“Come inside with me and find out.”


	9. “I think we need to talk.”

The boy let out a frustrated groan as he looked at the state his computer desk was in. Papers and books side by side, unfinished homework looking up at him tauntingly. It would've been intimidating if it had actually been his homework but it wasn't; it was his boyfriend's homework. Nathan turned to look at said boyfriend, who was laying on the couch with a comic book covering the view of his face. He had been in this position for quite some time, the homework forgotten couple hours ago already.

Nathan looked around his room not once but twice before he kicked the couch with enough force to shake the loosely held comic from Warren's fingers, which dropped on the boy's face.  
“I think we need to talk.” Nathan said as Warren's peaked behind the comic.  
“Okay...” the other boy slowly sat up. “About what?”  
Warren didn't seem to understand just from Nathan gesturing toward the desk, so he gestured toward the entire room. Warren looked around and then back at his boyfriend, frowning but obviously lost.  
“Your shit is everywhere!” Nathan snapped, kicking Warren's sneakers to the other side of the room for emphasis. “What the fuck?! He slammed his palm against an open math book.

Warren was on his feet and quickly move to gather his books as he finally understood Nathan's distress. In a moment he had stacked everything and moved it to the other desk, then Warren gathered all his extra clothes into a pile on the couch's armrest. After taking a final look he finally walked to Nathan: “Better?”  
Nathan exhaled slowly and gave Warren a kiss before sitting down.  
“Thank you.”


	10. “I thought you were dead.”

Somehow even in the relative darkness of the area, the blood was still vivid and caught his eye immediately. The world had gone completely silent but the gunshots were still echoing in Warren's ears as he pulled himself to his feet. It didn't take long for Warren to cover the distance to where Nathan was slumped over; his body was limp when Warren wrapped his arms around the other boy.

“What the... hell?” Nathan's voice was weak, like it was coming from somewhere very far away.  
Warren's brushed the few stray hairs off of his boyfriend's forehead so he could place a kiss on it. Nathan's hand found Warren's arm and tried to take hold of it but he didn't have enough strength to squeeze it.   
“I thought you were dead.”

There was a moment of silence before Nathan responded: “I probably am.”  
“I know, I saw it happen. And you just left me to die alone, you're so rude.” Warren sniffed dramatically, petting Nathan's head while the other guy was still groggy enough to let it slide. The moment didn't last and soon Nathan pushed Warren away, stretching in his chair.   
“Well what the fuck do you expect?” he asked, yawning, and looked at the computer monitor; flashing red text announced the mission failure in capital letters. “Your stupid games are so boring.”


	11. “Hey! I was gonna eat that!”

“You aren't funny.” Nathan noted, giving his boyfriend a dirty glare thanks to yet another horrible pop culture reference the nerd had delivered. Mostly Nathan did find Warren's jokes funny and occasionally he even let Warren know it, but there were just some situations where jokes were unnecessary. This was one of them, but the nerd seemed to disagree.

Warren hummed at his reaction and reached to take Nathan's hand in his own. He kissed it as an act of trying to appease his boyfriend's irritation. Slowly the older boy's frown smoothed out and he became more relaxed, even intertwining their fingers together; Warren knew he had been forgiven. For a moment they both remained quiet, but Warren simply couldn't resist the other quote that kept popping into his mind. As soon as the words escaped his lips, Warren knew he was done for.

Nathan gave himself a lot of credit for being a patient boyfriend but sometimes Warren needed to be taught a lesson. With a grunt he slapped Warren's hands away and stepped back, pulling his pants back up as he turned to leave.  
“Hey! I was gonna eat that!” Warren complained, still on his knees.


	12. “You did all of this for me?”

He wasn't really drunk, just a little bit tipsy and definitely arriving way past curfew to the dorm, so it surprised Nathan that the first thing he saw was Warren when he entered the floor. As soon as the latter realized he wasn't alone, he put away his phone and stood up, looking much more awake than just a second before it.  
“Finally! I've been waiting hours.” Warren huffed, coming to Nathan's side and tugging him to follow by his sleeve.

“Waiti-- What do you want with me this time, Graham?” Nathan failed to add any malice into his bark and just started walking with the other boy.  
“I wanted to wish you happy birthday, but you were out so late I have to wish you happy unbirthday now but I guess we'll have to make do.” was the explanation. Nathan was rendered speechless by the realization that Warren knew what day it was – or had been – and he suddenly felt growing warmth within his chest. 

Warren came to a halt in front of Nathan's room and gestured for Nathan to enter. For a brief moment the older boy considered raising a point out of Warren having entered his room while Nathan wasn't around, but he didn't want to ruin the moment so he just took a deep breath and opened the door. The first thing he noticed was that his bed and couch were both filled with whale plush toys; it looked like all of them were different too. The second thing he noticed was that there were countless of balloons pushing against the ceiling and the third thing was the cake on his desk, all of these following the same marine mammal theme.

Warren stood next to the bed, grinning from ear to ear as he looked at his handiwork and the room's occupant just stared at the entire mess. This was obviously punishment for Nathan sharing one piece of personal information with the nerd. It was ridiculous, of course he wouldn't keep any of these and he wanted to tell Warren just how much of an inconvenience it would be to clear all this out. He had already opened his mouth when a thought occurred to him.  
“You did all of this... for me?” he asked, counting the stuffed whales as he wondered how much money the poor boy had put into this joke of a surprise. It must've taken him months to collect all the different sorts of toys.

“Well, I did it for me too.” Warren confessed and when Nathan looked confused, he continued: “So I could see you smile again.”  
Even if Nathan had wanted to he couldn't have stopped doing just what Warren hoped he'd do. And maybe it was the alcohol or maybe it was something more, but Nathan acted on pure impulse as he stepped forward and pulled Warren into a hug. This was something the latter had not been expecting but welcomed without more than a second of hesitation.  
“Don't worry, I'll help you clean up.” Warren said against the other's shoulder, enjoying the feel of Nathan's arms tightening even more around him.


	13. “Kiss me.”

“What the hell do you want, Graham? When are you going to leave me alone, Graham? I'm too busy hiding the fact that I like you to actually talk to you, Graham.” Warren had hit Nathan with this impression as soon as the latter had opened his mouth. It annoyed him that he in fact had the intention to say two of those things, and Warren being completely aware of that made him groan. It annoyed Nathan even more that Warren got the chance to groan right before him, and in the exact same way.  
“Fuck off, Graham.” they said in unison.

“Change of tune might be in order.” Warren continued to amused by Nathan's obvious distress at the situation. “Try being nice, and maybe start using my first name already.”  
“I don't take orders from you.” Nathan noted, crossing his arms.  
“It wasn't an order, just constructive criticism.” Nathan rolled his eyes in response to Warren giving him the usual 'I bested you' wink and grinned at his own pretend wittiness. Well it was about time to change that, it was only a matter of figuring out how to go about it.

“Nathan?” Warren waved a hand in front of the other's face. “You've been staring for a while now, you okay?” the nerd actually sounded concerned.  
“Kiss me,” was Nathan's response. Even he himself was caught off guard by it and he didn't really know what had compelled him to say that. All he knew was that the words popped up as he had been looking at the nerd's grinning and trying to find a way to bring his lips into better use than that. But the desired effect was reached so Nathan wasn't going to complain about his inner genius, and instead he adopted a smug look.

Warren just stared at him, his eyes big like he wondered if they were speaking the same language or not. Nathan raised an expectant brow at him and he thoroughly enjoyed the continued shock that seemed to have rooted itself in the other boy.  
“Now that, Warren, was an order.” Nathan pointed out when nothing came out of the other boy. This was followed by more satisfying results as Warren started steadily turning red and as he realized it was happening, Warren covered his face with his hands but it was too late.  
“Come find me when you change that tune.” Nathan suggested, and for the first time in months he was able to walk away from Warren without the nerd following or at least shouting after him.  
Victory was sweet.


	14. “I swear it was an accident.”

Nathan hadn't talked (or been forced to talk) to Warren for almost two weeks now thanks to the holiday. It seemed like Warren had gone home for it like most of the students, and Nathan was appreciating the peace and quiet from his personal pest. He most certainly hadn't been feeling lonely at all, anyone saying that was understanding the situation completely wrong. 

“Nathan! Hold up!”   
When that familiar nerdy voice rang out from behind him that evening it was like no time had passed at all. He must've been rusty since against his better judgment, Nathan actually stopped and turned to face the nerd. He was immediately greeted with a goofy grin and a hand placed on his shoulder when Warren got close enough. Nathan didn't even have time to push it off before he was hit with something worse: Warren kissed him on the cheek.

Nathan was too shocked to do anything else but to ask: “What the fuck was that?”  
“I swear it was an accident.” Warren held up both of his hands defensively, taking a step back but he looked like he was holding back a smile.  
“How...” Nathan started but had to stop to clear his throat. “How the hell do you do that by accident?”   
“I forgot we aren't dating yet.” Warren explained, now failing to look serious at all as he put emphasis on the last word.  
Nathan walked away and refused to acknowledge the nerd for the next few days.


	15. “Tell me a secret.”

“Hey Nathan.”  
Warren only received a muffled grunt in response, coming from somewhere under the covers where the other boy had disappeared several minutes before. He lifted it enough to see the other boy, lying on his stomach with his face sunk into the fluffy pillow. Warren turned the bed side lamp off and slid down from sitting position, pulling the cover over his own head as well, wrapping them both in darkness.

“Hey Nathan.” he tried again, this time softer.  
“For fuck's sake, what?” Nathan asked, refusing to lift his head so his words still sounded muffled.  
“Tell me a secret.” requested the nerd.  
There was a pause, during which Nathan finally lifted up his head and rubbed his eyes with the palm of his hand. “What are you going on about?”  
“Well, I was thinking that we've known each other for a while and this could be the perfect time to bond even more.” Warren reasoned, sounding serious about it. “So we could start by each sharing a secret no one else knows about.”  
Nathan squinted, trying to make out Warren's expression but only able to see his general shape. “And you think this is a good idea?” Nathan could see Warren nodding in response.  
“Fine.” Nathan sighed, rolling his eyes as Warren perked up and turned on his side, expectant to whatever Nathan was going to say.

“Just one secret, right?” Nathan checked. “And then I can finally go to sleep without you blabbering in my ear every five minutes?”  
“Yes, just one.” Warren agreed, sounding like he couldn't believe Nathan had actually gone along with his proposal. Truth be told, Nathan couldn't believe it himself but he had already figured out Warren enough to know there were certain situations where you'd suffer less if you went along with him.  
Nathan was silent for a while before saying: “And you won't ever tell anyone else about this?”  
Warren shook his head so hard the covers shifted.  
“Good, because if you do, I'll beat your ass.” Nathan threatened, but Warren remained unfazed. 

Several minutes went by as Nathan struggled to get the words out, but the nerd was patient and didn't rush him. Finally Nathan took a deep breath and came out with it.  
“I don't exactly hate you.”  
Silence followed.  
“Nathan, we are dating.” Warren pointed out.  
“Yeah.” agreed the other guy, sounding pained from his confession.  
“Nathan, we are sleeping together. Right now.”  
“Yeah.” Nathan practically sniffled and Warren gave him a single hit on the arm, before huffing and turning his back on the boy.  
Nathan put his head in his pillow again, knowing he would be able to sleep without being interrupted by the other one again, but he just had to make sure: “Don't tell everyone, you promised.”  
The nerd didn't justify him with a response.


	16. “…and you’re the best at boring me to sleep. That’s the only reason I called you, so talk to me.“

Warren kicked off the shoe that had been dangling on his foot, he had been in the process of tying the laces when he had been interrupted by ‘Wrecking Ball’ blaring from his phone. After jamming to his ringtone until the chorus was over, Warren had been taken aback by the name on the screen. He had hurried to answer and apologized for taking so long, which the caller had responded to with an annoyed huff.

When he had given his number to Nathan – or more specifically when he had kept offering until Nathan had decided it was easier to accept than keep endlessly declining – Warren hadn’t really expected the other boy to use it. Frankly he had assumed Nathan had just deleted the number as soon as Warren was out of sight and forgotten about it. Warren was confused but happy to be proven wrong, and didn’t even consider it weird that Nathan had called him after midnight. Nathan hadn’t said much, he had simply kept asking for Warren to talk to him and Warren had happily obliged.

"Aaaand that’s why I stopped collecting bottle caps, but it’s not why I dyed my hair.”   
"That’s… really stupid.” The boy on the other end of the line commented, sounding like he was trying not to laugh.  
"Hey careful! That’s my life you are talking about there!” He tried his best to sound insulted but couldn’t stop himself from laughing.  
"Well yeah, but your life is pretty pathetic.” Nathan quipped, causing Warren to laugh more and he was sure he could hear Nathan laughing too.  
"You’re the best, Nathan.” Warren said once he calmed down.  
There was a slight pause before Nathan responded with: “..what?”  
"I said you’re the best – the best at giving mindful complimets that really make a boy feel loved!”

The line went silent, making Warren check if Nathan had hung up on him. He was surprised to see the name still on his screen, but still imagined that maybe the other boy had tossed his phone out of the window; he realized this wasn’t the case when he heard Nathan draw a deep breath.   
"…and you’re the best at boring me to sleep.” He said in his usual biting tone, but it sounded forced. “That’s the only reason I called you, so talk to me.”  
"I’m sorry, I bore you to sleep?” Warren questioned but there was no answer so he continued: “Nathan, the sun is coming up. I don’t think I bored you enough.”  
After one more pause Nathan finally said: “Just tell me why you dyed your hair.”


	17. “Just…stay.”

Warren prided himself on his ability to read Nathan’s moods, often ignoring the fact that Nathan wasn’t exactly hiding his moods to begin with; the older guy was always very direct with expressing his annoyance to the one who kept bothering him. However, lately Nathan had seemed to be willing to put up with Warren’s antics, even seeking his company.  
This new development in their relationship made Warren ecstatic, but he also worried about coming off too strong and driving Nathan away. He felt that he was doing well since Nathan had agreed to several of Warren’s suggestions with only minimal skepticism. But half an hour into their latest pastime, Nathan had started to become antsy. Normally Warren would have been bit more careful with his words and actions after that point, but this time he felt much too amused by the look on the guy’s face. Finally he seemed to strike the last nerve, realizing his mistake when Nathan slapped Warren’s hand away from his hair. 

"No no no, I am done, I’m getting out of here.” Nathan stood up, stomping toward the door but he severely underestimated Warren’s reaction time; the younger guy was between Nathan and his destination in seconds.  
"Hold on, don’t be so rash.” Warren said, holding up his hands while he leaned his back on the door; Nathan grabbed the handle and tried to open it anyway.  
"Get out of my way, Graham.” he growled when Warren refused to budge.  
"No, just sit down.” Warren insisted but sighed when Nathan glared at him. He stepped to his side, but Nathan didn’t leave immediately. He side-eyed Warren, having not expected Warren to actually move that easily.

“Just… stay.” Warren said, trying out an approach that had worked couple times before. He knew he had swayed the other when Nathan groaned. He let go off the handle, still staring at Warren, who now tried not to break into a huge grin.  
"I’m only staying because I can’t let anyone see me like this.” the angry guy snapped, gesturing to the superhero-themed towel that was still wrapped around his shoulders, then returned to his seat. “But if you try anything funny, I’m out of here.”  
"Fine, just have normal boring highlights no one’s going to spot then.” Warren couldn’t help but to smile as he tossed the bottle of pink hair dye to the other side of the room, hoping to use it another day.


End file.
